If you have difficulty remembering things, your mind may make the leap to Alzheimer’s disease – but that’s not the only cause of memory loss.
You can’t find your keys, you keep forgetting names, or perhaps you missed an appointment. For many people in middle age or older, simple acts of forgetfulness like these are scary because they raise the spectre of Alzheimer’s disease.
But Alzheimer’s is not the only health problem that can lead to forgetfulness, says the National Institute on Aging.
Memory lapses can happen at any age and for a number of reasons. And when the underlying cause is treated, the memory problems often improve as well.
“Patients might experience memory loss and describe their symptoms similarly, but a doctor can tease apart what parts of the brain are affected,” says Seth Gale, MD, a neurologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and assistant professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School in Boston.
“When you drill down and find out what’s actually happening with someone’s mental functions, you can reassure them. For example, it’s common for people to still have the capacity to learn and store information, but because of their overloaded mental resources at this time of their life, they have trouble doing it well,” Dr. Gale says.
Talk with your doctor about concerns you may have about your memory, so that the condition responsible for your symptoms can be addressed. Discussing your symptoms and taking various tests, such as a cognitive screening assessment and possibly an MRI, may help your doctor determine what is affecting your memory, Gale says.
In some cases, if you feel like your memory is bad, one or more of the following issues could be playing a role.
1. Stress, Anxiety, ADHD, and Depression Affect Memory
Significant stress or anxiety can lead to problems with attention and memory, says Constantine Lyketsos, MD, director of the Memory and Alzheimer’s Treatment Center at Johns Hopkins Medicine and Professor and Director of the Psychiatry Department at Johns Hopkins Bayview.
If you cannot focus on the information, you will not be able to remember the information.
This is particularly common among people who may be juggling home and work responsibilities and are not sleeping well. Usually, easing stress can improve memory, he says.
Untreated chronic stress can lead to depression, which could also affect brain function, including some measures of memory.
However, a mood disorder such as depression may improve with medication and counselling, notes the National Institute on Aging.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can also cause problems with working memory (the ability to retain a limited amount of information for immediate use, such as recalling a number in order to solve a math problem) and forgetfulness.
2. Sleep Problems Can Cause Memory Loss
Sleep problems, including insomnia, or the chronic inability to fall or stay asleep, as well as sleep apnoea, a disorder that causes breathing to stop briefly and frequently throughout the night, have been linked with memory loss and dementia.
Lack of sleep causes fatigue, which in turn, can lead to brain fog and memory problems.
In a study, people with insomnia and sleep apn0ea were less likely to perform well on assessments designed to measure memory, compared with people without those conditions.
When not treated, sleep apnoea affects spatial navigational memory a study found. This type of memory includes being able to remember directions and where you put things, like your keys, Dr. Lyketsos says.
One explanation is that for people with sleep apnoea, oxygen delivery to the brain is interrupted several hundred times during the night, explains Lyketsos. “The brain is stressed by the oxygen disruption, so people wake up,” he says. The injury that sleep apnoea causes can show up as a variety of memory loss symptoms, he adds.
3. Medications May Increase Forgetfulness
Memory loss or forgetfulness could be a sign that your medication needs to be adjusted. Several types of drugs can affect memory according to AARP, including:
• Antihistamines
• Sleeping pills with Benadryl (diphenhydramine)
• Anti-anxiety medications
• Antidepressants
• Anti-seizure medications
• Blood-pressure medications
• Certain painkillers
• Cholesterol-lowering medications
• Diabetes medications
• Drugs to treat Parkinson’s disease
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration also cautions that the cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins could slightly increase the risk of reversible cognitive side effects, including memory loss and confusion.
4. A Nutritional Deficiency Could Be the Culprit
A lack of sufficient levels of B12, one of the B vitamins essential for normal nerve function, can lead to confusion and memory loss, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Each day, adults should get about 2.4 micrograms of B12 in their diet from foods such as dairy products, meat, and fish, or from foods fortified with vitamin B12, such as fortified cereals, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Risk factors for developing a vitamin B12 deficiency include:
• Being over 75
• Having a digestive system disorder
• Following a strict vegan or vegetarian diet
• Taking certain medications, including metformin, proton pump inhibitors, and oral birth control pills
• Having Sjögren’s syndrome
• Drinking large amounts of alcohol
5. Silent Stroke Can Bring on Memory Issues
Obvious changes in the ability to think and move normally can come from a stroke that blocks major blood vessels that feed the brain, Gale says.
Mild memory problems can also develop gradually after “silent strokes” – or those that occur without any noticeable symptoms, according to the American Heart Association.
These changes in brain function, which can range from mild to severe, are called vascular cognitive impairment.
The brain is especially vulnerable to blocked or reduced blood flow depriving it of oxygen and essential nutrients. And research suggests that lower cognitive function may be an early warning sign of cardiovascular diseases, including stroke.
Less Common Causes of Memory Loss
Other conditions that can lead to problems with memory include:
• Infection
Memory loss may be attributed to severe infection around the brain, particularly if it’s left untreated, Gale says. For example, some people with long COVID-19 have reported memory loss following infection, according to Lyketsos.
• Head Injury
Symptoms of a mild brain injury may include confusion and trouble with memory and concentration, according to the U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
• Tumours
Memory and the ability to process information may be affected by brain tumours, says the National Brain Tumour Society. In addition, the treatments for a brain tumour, such as brain surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation therapy, can all affect your memory.
• Alcoholism, Substance Abuse
Both alcoholism and drug abuse can affect memory, says Lyketsos. One study found that heavy alcohol consumption among adults age 70 and older increased their risk of cognitive impairment, compared with light drinkers and non-drinkers in the same age group.
The Takeaway
Memory lapses can be concerning, but they’re not necessarily due to dementia. Stress and mood disorders, sleep problems, certain medications, nutritional deficiencies, and silent stroke can all cause memory problems. When the underlying cause is treated, cognitive function often improves.
Additional reporting by Brian P. Dunleavy.
SOURCE: Everyday Health
